Posted on 09/25/2014 8:31:55 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
n artist’s conception of INS Vikrant, India’s first domestically-built carrier India is weighing constructing its second carrier with nuclear power. Indian Navy Image
India is considering powering its second domestically built aircraft carrier with a nuclear propulsion plant, according to a Tuesday report by news agency Press Trust of India.
The design of the carrier is ongoing and nuclear power is still an option for the carrier, said Director General of Naval Design Bureau, Rear Admiral Atul Saxena, in response to questions from reporters.
India’s first domestically built carrier — the 40,000-ton INS Vikrant currently under construction in Cochin Shipyard in Southern India — will be powered by four General Electric LM-2500 gas turbines.
The second carrier Vishal is planned to be much larger — up to 65,000-tons — and is still in the conceptual design process, Saxena said.
Last year Indian officials said the two major decisions for the carrier were its power supply and launching and recovery methods for the planned Vishnal.
Though more technically complicated in design and construction stages, a nuclear powered carrier provides greater flexibility to commanders once in operation, Eric Wertheim, author of the Naval Institute’s Combat Fleets of the World, told USNI News on Wednesday.
“Nuclear power frees up space,” he said. “You don’t have to store fuel for your ship onboard.”
Nuclear carriers have more room for ammunition and fuel for aircraft on the ship and shedding the requirement for refueling the ship simplify the logistics of resupplying the carrier at sea.
However, it’s unclear if India can overcome the technical requirements to fielding a nuclear carrier.
“It’s a big if. There’s a lot of challenges to overcome,” Wertheim said. “I’m skeptical how soon India would be able to master that ability.”
India’s new leadership is bullish on the country’s carrier ambitions, writ large.
In July, India’s new Prime Minister Narendra Modi backed funding the $3.18 billion needed to complete INS Vikrant, following a visit to India’s Russian built carrier, INS Vikramaditya.
Vikrant supposed to be completed in 2013 but delays in construction have pushed the operational date to 2018.
Eventually, India wants to operate three carrier battle groups (CBG).
Part of India’s push to create a carrier force widely seen as a hedge against Chinese expansion and the growing capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).
China is currently working on its own domestic carrier program with a reported goal of four ships.
The Indian Navy currently operates two originally foreign carriers — the Russian built INS Vikramaditya and the 50 year-old carrier INS Viraat — the former British carrier Hermes.
The proposed nuke carrier would be in the same size range as the British conventional powered QE II Class now being built. Only France and the US currently have nuke carriers.
A question for those in the know: is the tilted flight deck an evolutionary improvement for launching planes? If yes, why doesn’t our Navy employ it?
The “ski ramp” bow is a British invention. It helps VSTOL aircraft take off with a larger bomb/fuel load. The problem is that if you want more than one catapult, the bow gets incredibly complicated, and actually dangerous. A sailor could fall off the upper section onto the lower section. It works only for smaller carriers.
Do you need a really big drydock to weigh them?
The ski jump was designed originally by the British to allow STOVL Harriers to launch with a heavier pay load than a conventional vertical take off like the US Marine Harriers still do. But it is still inferior to a catapult system in terms of allowable take off weight. Also some Navy planes are incapable of taking off without using a catapult. The main advantage of the Ski Jump is lower costs and the ship can be smaller.
The Indians are building nuke powered SSBNs so I guess the know now learned from that can be used in a nuke carrier.
Additionally, on larger deck carriers, ones that allow catapults on both the bow and the port side angled deck, it’s possible to launch aircraft concurently (two at a time) rather than consecutively (one at a time)
The Indian nuclear carrier will cost $8,995, take three months to build and will have missile tubes capable of launching satellites into orbit around Mars on an as-needed basis.
I was looking for that post!
Making a operational, compact and stable power plant for a ship is a similarly difficult undertaking.
They would do well to focus on one thing at a time. It's a 30 year program.
They are using experience gained in their nuclear submarine programme.
$9,000 for a nuclear powered aircraft carrier? Good deal! I’ll take two. Does it come in pink? (that’s my wife’s favorite color.)
Ping.
“India Weighing Nuclear Powered Carrier”... wow, that must be a VERY BIG scale.
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